macro-trend: The slow decline of fast food in America

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NEW YORK – The hospitals of the Truman Medical Centers in Kansas City, Missouri no longer serve fast food in their cafeterias, after ending a contract with McDonald’s in 2012—two years ahead of schedule.

In Kentucky, Kosair Children’s Hospital signed up to serve Big Macs and Chicken McNuggets to its patients when it opened in 1986. But it has now followed in TMC’s footsteps. The reversals by hospital chains that once embraced McDonald’s reflect a waning love affair with fast food in the United States, as consumers become increasingly aware of the benefits of eating better.

“Fast foods have their place, but I am not so sure their place is inside the hospital,” recalled John Bluford, the former TMC chief executive.

“We thought that we needed to change the game a little bit and start creating a culture of health,” Bluford told AFP.

“It was a health-concerned decision and a mission-driven decision, given our mission to improve the health of our community.”

 Mainly, it’s Shifting tastes & Better options – more…